Yolanda Román: “Politics is the ability of coexistence”

The daily newspaper SABEMOS digital published an interview carried out by Germán Pacheco with Yolanda Román, the director of Public Affairs at ATREVIA.

How did the lobby arrive to the world?

I have always dedicated myself professionally to the work of lobbies. I have not done anything else to try to influence except by interacting with institutions, actors and political agents. Moreover, I was dedicated to research and training for some time. I began my career with lobbies 15 years ago in Brussels which is one of the biggest capital cities for lobbies. I began by working in Amnesty International which is one of the biggest lobby organizations in terms of Human Rights. I worked with a big team and followed the activities of the European Parliament on foreign policy issues. It coincides with one of the processes of EU enlargement and we worked hard to include human rights and liberty clauses in membership negotiations.

What does the work of a lobbyist consist of?

I do not consider myself a lobbyist but instead as a public relations and corporate diplomacy advisor. I think that the lobby within the Public Relations discipline is a very specific and technical issue. It is a type of operation to influence management which is appropriate for some contexts and certain goals. I like to talk about “public affairs management” with a broader and more complex approach in relation to political influence based on strategies that represent interests, which we construct and collaborate rather than putting pressure. For me, the most important role is not being an intermediary but instead thinking and designing the best tactics and using the best tools to achieve the impact in the search for political and regulatory processes. A lobbyist is associated with someone with great relational skills that an intermediary has in the hope to influence political decisions. I believe that the lobby is a creative and productive activity, which is more “industrial” than relational, contrary to what is usually thought. It is a discipline that understands how institutions, political dynamics and communication works to help in the process of taking decisions, supporting contents, arguments and information.

How different is the work of NGO´s in relation to that performed by big companies?

It is basically the same. It is a job that requires the same skills: research and analysis capacity, knowledge on the function of institutions, political logic and strategic vision. The tools are the things that change. In the social world, external social communication is a very useful influential tool but in the private environment it is used less often. I am not saying that communication is not used in this environment but instead it is done in a different way without big campaigns. NGO´s looks for a rapid response from public opinions while in the private environment more research, expertise and data is used. It depends on the objectives that they pursue. Not only do they influence in the regulatory environment to help change or promote a policy but also to change the political discussion to improve public policies or to determine the political agenda.

Do big companies with more resources find it easier to influence and defend the interest rather than social organizations or NGO´s?

I do not think it is a question of how many resources they have but instead how they use them. Recently the EU brought out a report that demonstrates that a big economic investment in the lobby does not signify a major impact on legislation or politics. I think that like everything it is a question of good strategies and professionalism. There are social organizations that make very striking and humorous campaigns and then fail in the area of institutional relations. This despite making some noise has no real impact. The same happens with some companies, sometimes who invest a lot of money in institutional presence but lack strategy or communication. They key is not the resources but how to use them effectively. If I was pressed, I would have to say that companies usually have more resources in general, not only intended to lobby but also in communication, marketing, internal organization. These resources, if are used in a strategic and coordinate way should give good results. This is the strength that can make a difference.

To what extent is the lobby developed in Spain?

I think that the activity in Spain is as developed as that is any other country in our environment. Another thing is that this is more or less regulated and professionalized. I do not think that there is a lobby regulation problem in Spain. It is not a regulation problem but instead a problem of normalization. Regulation is the existing legal framework which is sufficiently broad and concrete so that excess and abuse can be avoided. I think that the problem is the democratic culture, trust and transparency – it is not the best but it is alright – the culture needs to be changed from those that make a lobby as well as policy makers. One cannot forget that they are about being influential and defending interests and it is a natural vocation and normal for any social organization. Any human organization is always about having an impact, influencing in the political and social reality going from a community of neighbors to a company or institution of a large size.

Does the lobby help politics?

Without a doubt. I think it is part of the political participation exercise and that is a basic aspect in democracy.

What would you say to people that think that the lobby is a transparent way to influence?

I would say to them that this precisely the way of thinking that should be avoided but instead it is necessary so that issues of great importance are dealt with in society. For example, on the topic of children, which is a topic that I know well, has been included in the political agenda in recent years thanks to the advocacy of social organizations. This seems like an exercise in critical participation and democracy to me. Companies with sector knowledge in which they are dedicated also should help to take important political and economic decisions. I believe that decision making cannot be done in key sections for the life of the country like energy and technological innovation for example without the opinion, vision and expertise of the companies that operate in this area.

All the public, social and private actors should participate in decision taking which supports their vision, knowledge and best proposals to respond to the challenges, social and economic problems. Politics is the art of different interests coexisting and for this it is necessary to put on the table the processes of taking decisions all the opinions, visions and information in a transparent way. What must be avoided is the feeling that there is a dark form and influence behind closed doors. Many colleagues advocate a register of lobbyists as there are in the EU but it seems to me much more effective than the agendas that are published and normalizes activity.

How can we take advantage of the digital tools to influence the political agenda and have an impact on decision making?

I defend e-lobbying as a way of influencing the political agenda, in the sense that the digital environment offers additional tools for the positioning and political influence that combined with the classic tools are able to be effective. Today the digital tools are indispensable but not essential. I want to say that you cannot deny its usefulness and the possibilities that it opens but an advocacy strategy can survive without them. You must have clear to influence in the political environment using social media, applications and other tools must be especially subtle. I think that e-lobbying has a fine line and absolute control of communication as well in the manufacturing and control of the message. It is easy to lose the tone, generate doubts on the severity and with that lose credibility. My response to e-lobbying is yes but without losing credibility or rigor that are the basis of convincing.

Next Wednesday the 1st International Digital Policy Commmunication Conference will take place in the Congress. There it will be presented on tools that search to improve communication between politicians and citizens (Change, Kuorum.org y Osoigo). What level of impact do you think that these initiatives have to influence politics?

They are essential tools but they are still unknown or not well utilized by the public in general. The challenge is encouraging participation to make that in the decision making process influences more opinions and various visions. I think that in the future the institutions will have their own developed mechanisms to favor the maximum amount of citizen participation. The institutions should be careful in a way that allows and favors citizen participation in the taking of decisions and taking measures to improve. This is not saying that absolutely thinking that all decisions should be taken with participative and open processes but yes that they should have guarantees and mechanisms so that decisions that are special, have high importance and with a great social impact are taken at a high level of citizen participation.

Photo: SABEMOS digital

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